Flexible sponge mop head



Nov. 29, 1966 F. A. GESELL 3,287,756

FLEXIBLE SPONGE MOP HEAD Filed Oct. 24. 1965 lNVENTO/E FRANK A. GESELL A TTORNEY United States Patent 3,287,756 FLEXIBLE SPONGE MOP HEAD Frank A. Gesell, 708 South Road, Harbor Estates, Boynton Beach, Fla. Filed Oct. 24, 1965, Ser. No. 504,383 3 Claims. (Cl. 119) water and be squeezed out generally have facilities for bending and compressing the sponge-like materials in order to expel liquids therefrom. A sponge material per se can be used as a mop but in order to attach a handle and/ or to expel absorbed liquid without exposing the hands to the liquid, a waterproof backing is provided for most mops. The simpler and more economical mops are manually squeezed by bending same about a centrally located longitudinal axis. However, the sponge material along the axis piles up, creating a resistance to the distal ends being pivoted through 180 and thus preventing complete removal of all the absorbed liquid.

One approach to circumventing piling up of the sponge proximal to the bending axis has been to provide a multi unit backing. This multi unit backing separates upon bending thereby providing excess room about the bending axis for the piled sponge to enter. This solution is expensive and impractical since the backing or supporting member for the sponge comprises a plurality of parts requiring accurate mating of various surfaces of the parts and extra elements (e.g., tapes) to hold the multiple units together. Also, the multi part construction renders the backing surface liable to quicker deterioration and failure from continued use.

In view of the above innumerated difficulties with prior mop heads, it is desirable that a mop head be provided which both eliminates bunching up around the bending axis and has a simply constructed backing or supporting surface for the cleaning element.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved mop head.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a mop head having a sponge-like cleaning element with a supporting member that circumvents piling of the spongelike material about the axis of bending.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a mop head having a sponge-like cleaning element with a simple moldable one-piece backing unit that may simply and quickly be attached thereto.

With these and other objects in view, the nature of which will be more apparent, the invention will be more fully understood by reference to the detailed description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawing.

I have found that an economical, simple and effective mop head can be produced by taking a rectangular block of sponge and a single backing unit to cover one surface thereof where the backing unit is stiff along its leading and trailing edges and flexible intermediate these stiff areas, the unit being adhesively secured to the sponge at the stiff areas but free and spaced from the sponge at the intermediate flexible areas.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a central vertical sectional view of a mop head constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the mop head shown in FIG. I particularly illustrating a backing sheet; and

FIG. 3 is a side view of the mop head in squeezed position.

Referring first to FIG. 1, a mop head generally desig nated as 10 includes a cleaning element 11 and a backing sheet generally designated as 12 which includes a leading thickened stiff portion 13 and a trailing thickened stiff portion 14 connected by a relatively thin flexible section 16. Any rubber-like or plastic materials will suffice so long as relatively thin sections are flexible and relatively thick sections are rigid.

Backing sheet 12 is firmly secured to the cleaning element 11, for example, by cementing the undersides 21 and 22 of the thick portions 13 and 14, respectively, to the cleaning element. As can readily be seen in FIG. 1, a space or recess 24, e.g. 71 (range from /8" to is formed in the vicinity of the centrally located longitudinal axis of the cleaning element 11. Backing sheet 12 includes two transverse ridges 25 extending upward from the upper surface of thick portion 14. A flattened portion 28 of a tubular mop handle 29 is inserted intermediate ridges 25 and a screw 31 extends through portion 14 and an aperture in the mop handle. The mop handle is then firmly secured to the backing sheet by a wing nut 35. Various other means of attaching a handle will be obvious.

In practice, mop head 10 may be utilized as a hand cleaning device or may be secured on the end of a mop handle. After cleaning in a normal manner wherein cleaning element 11 absorbs liquid, for example dirty water, cleaning element 11 must be squeezed. As shown in FIG. 3, portion 13 is bent downward and around to a position beneath portion 14 and then forced toward portion 14 in order to compress and squeeze cleaning element 11 to expel the liquid. Porton 37 of cleaning element 11 adjacent to the central longitudinal axis of the cleaning element fills the recess 24, thereby eliminating piling up of the cleaning element. Accordingly, the distal sponge ends pivot and practically all of the liquid is expelled.

Backing sheet 12 is preferably made out of a one-piece construction such as by molding or casting, thereby greatly simplifying the fabrication of the mop head and enhancing the useful life of same. In order to facilitate hand manipulation of the mop head for purposes of squeezing, upstanding ridges 40 and 41 may be formed on portions 13 and 14 to provide gripping areas. Also, score lines or grooves 42 and 43 (e.g. A radius) may be formed in the under surface of the backing sheet 12 at the opposite ends of the thin section 16. These grooves cause the backing to break, i.e. bend first at the grooves, thereby both regulating the point at which the cleaning element will first bend and also enhancing the life of the backing sheet. Further, apertures 45 and 46 may be formed in the thin section 16 of the backing sheet to provide an opening through which liquid can escape and also to give added flexibility to section 16.

The stiff and flexible portions of the backing may be caused or effected by relative thickness of material, lami nation, adhering to the sponge, heat treatment, hardening and softening agents, etc., all of which are included within the scope of this invention. It is obvious, of course, that various pliable materials can be used such as plastics, rubber compositions, etc. and polypropylene has been found particularly desirable.

Such a backing would be useful (but less so) without the spacing from the sponge through the intermediate portion. Similarly, the spacing would be useful to a certain extent with any flexible back member.

Numerous other modifications of the specific embodi- (a ment of the present invention which is shown may be made by those skilled in the art, which modifications fall within the scope and spirit of this invention.

-I claim:

1. A mop head comprising an elongated block of pliable sponge material having a lower washing surface and an upper surface, a one-piece elongated backing unit having a relatively thin and flexible elongated central portion, thicker rigid elongated leading and trailing portions integral with and parallel to said central portion and adjacent said upper surface of said pliable sponge material, said leading and trailing portions being thickened in the direction of the sponge, means adhesively securing said thickened rigid leading and trailing portions to the upper surface of said pliable sponge material, said central portion being free of the sponge, an elongated recess between said pliable sponge material and said flexible central portion of said backing unit, and an elongated longitudinal gripping ridge on the upper surface of each of said leading and trailing portions of said backing unit extending the length thereof and a pair of elongated recesses in the undersurface of the backing unit defining said flexible central portion whereby the unit breaks at said recesses.

2. The mop head of claim 1 wherein said flexible central portion of said backing unit includes at least one aperture therein for facilitating the squeezing of liquid from said pliable material.

3. The mop head of claim 1 wherein said backing unit and said pliable material are substantially rectangular and of substantially the same planar dimension.

References Cited by the Examiner 10 UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,221,128 11/1940 Bates 15l19.1 X 2,694,210 11/1954 Bitzer et a1. 15119.1 2,742,659 4/ 1956 McGraW 151 19.1 15 2,865,036 12/1958 Poritz 15-119.1 2,877,478 3/1959 Kohlwey et al. 15-119.1 3,147,502 8/1964 Richards 15--119.1 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 20 833,138 4/1960 Great Britain. 928,986 6/1963 Great Britain.

DANIEL BLUM, Primary Examiner. 

1. A MOP HEAD COMPRISING AN ELONGATED BLOCK OF PLIABLE SPONGE MATERIAL HAVING A LOWER WASHING SURFACE AND AN UPPER SURFACE, A ONE-PIECE ELONGATED BACKING UNIT HAVING A RELATIVELY THIN AND FLEXIBLE ELONGATED CENTRAL PORTION, THICHER RIGID ELONGATED LEADING AND TRAILING PORTIONS INTEGRAL WITH AND PARALLEL TO SAID CENTRAL PORTION AND ADJACAENT SAID UPPER SURFACE OF SAID PLIABLE SPONGE MATERIAL, SAID LEADING AND TRAILING PORTIONS BEING THICKENED IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SPONGE, MEANS ADHESIVELY SECURING SAID THICKENED RIGID LEADING AND TRAILING PORTIONS TO THE UPPER SURFACE OF SAID PLIABLE SPONGE MATERIAL, SAID CENTRAL PORTION BEING FREE OF THE SPONGE, AN ELONGATED RECESS BETWEEN SAID PLIABLE SPONGE MATERIAL AND SAID FLEXIBLE CENTRAL PORTION OF SAID BACKING UNIT, AND AN ELONGATED LONGITUDINAL GRIPPING RIDGE ON THE UPPER SURFACE OF EACH OF SAID LEADING AND TRAILING PROTIONS OF SAID BACKING UNIT EXTENDING THE LENGTH THEREOF AND A PAIR OF ELONGATED RECESSES IN THE UNDERSURFACE OF THE BACKING UNIT DEFINING SAID FLEXIBLE CENTRAL PORTIONS WHEREBY THE UNIT BREAKS AT SAID RECESSES. 